Dear Members,

Survey

Many thanks to the 75 schools which have already completed our survey on the numbers of boarders returning this term.

To access the survey, please click here. If you've yet to complete it, please could we encourage you to take the survey as it will allow us to gain a picture across the sector, and will no doubt inform our future discussions with various government departments and other agencies.

We will of course summarise, anonymise, and share the data with our members.

Testing

Many members are in touch with us about the chaos of accessing the NHS testing system, using private firms to provide faster tests or buying testing machines for their schools. In England, the DfE has been in touch with us several times to ask about school experiences and the arrangements being made and we are sharing case studies with them daily. To help inform this, any school which would like to share details of its own experience or arrangements may wish to email me via robin@boarding.org.uk

Conferences 

Rescheduled Annual Conference for Heads (sponsored by iSAMS)
September 22-23, 2020
Our rescheduled 2020 Annual Conference for Heads, sponsored by iSAMS, is now just under a week away. If you have not already done so and would like to join the event live, or receive a recording, please click here.

Diversity and Inclusion in Boarding conference
October 14, 2020
Taking place next month will also be our Diversity and Inclusion in Boarding conference. More information on the event, plus details on how to secure your place, can be found in the Virtual Conferences section below.

Finalists for BSA Awards 2020

Our annual BSA Awards are our opportunity to celebrate the achievements, hard work, and dedication of schools and individuals to boarding. So we're delighted to announce the shortlist of finalists for this year's awards, which you can see in full on our website.

The winners will be announced at our Annual Conference for Heads next week. During the ceremony, we will also be revealing the winner of a very special award, the Khadija Saye Photography Award, named in honour of the former Rugby School boarding pupil and respected international photographer, who tragically died in the Grenfell Tower fire in 2017.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to send in nominations for this year’s awards – we hope you will be able to join us next week when we announce the winners.

Consultancy support

Our In House consultancy service, which is discounted for member schools, is currently supporting several member schools on various boarding projects. In House can support schools on projects related to any area of boarding and safeguarding, including strategy, marketing, boarding operations, boarding governance and facility reviews. If there any schools with projects needing BSA support please contact me so we can ensure diary dates and resources are identified and secured.

School Places

We’ve teamed up with Bulldog Publishing to launch Schoolplaces.org, a dedicated live information resource for schools, parents, and education agents. Schoolplaces.org is designed to help agents and families easily find available school places, all in one location. And it’s also the ideal platform for schools to showcase themselves and let parents and agents know what they are offering. If you’re interested in getting your school listed on Schoolplaces.org, please email hello@schoolplaces.org.

Best wishes, 

Robin Fletcher
Chief Executive, BSA and BSA Group

COVID-19 update

BSA is aware of the issues schools are facing with relation to testing capacity, and the logistical problems this presents for boarding schools in particular. Unfortunately the guidance currently allows for no other course of action than to isolate the boarding bubble if a boarder becomes symptomatic, which makes a speedy test result even more critical. Both BSA and ISC are actively highlighting the issues concerned to DfE.

Wales

The long-awaited Boarding School and Residential School guidance for Wales has now been published. To access the guidance, please click here.

England

GOV.UK has amended its Actions for schools during the coronavirus outbreak advice with updated guidance on managing confirmed cases of coronavirus (COVID-19), and what to do if a pupil is displaying symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19). It has also updated its Coronavirus (COVID-19): kits for schools and FE providers advice to include additional information on ordering test kits and clarification of wording for different age group test use. Yesterday, it also updated its Coronavirus (COVID-19): advice for UK visa applicants and temporary UK residents guidance. This revised document now includes updated guidance on applying for a visa if your VAC is closed, for those who have already applied online and now wish to submit their application at a different VAC than the one they selected. It has also updated the ‘If you’re in the UK’ section to note that if conditions allowed you to work, study or rent accommodation you may continue to do so during the period of your exceptional assurance. Earlier today, it also revised its Guidance for full opening: special schools and other specialist settings to include an updated section on managing confirmed cases of coronavirus (COVID-19).

Exeats and half-term

Schools will no doubt be focused on getting their pupils back for the start of term but we would urge members to look ahead to exeats, October half term and the end of term. International pupils will be understandably unwilling to leave their boarding houses this term and we suggest that schools strongly consider keeping their boarding houses open for these holidays. Unless the situation has changed dramatically by the end of term, many international pupils will be unable to go home if they come from a country, such as China, where they would have to enter quarantine to go home and then again to return to the UK.

BSA COVID-19 supplier list

BSA has a list of suppliers of vital equipment on our website, and the list continues to grow. BSA does not officially endorse any of the products listed. Schools are urged to perform their own due diligence checks on any company they plan to approach:

• Active Sanitiser & Protection Tunnel: PTC XtraSAN
• Branded Face Masks: Funky Face Mask 
• Goldpro (please see the BSA Supplier page for full details of Goldpro)
• Disinfectant: Safe Tech Installations Limited
• Liquid hand sanitiser: ClearWater Hygiene
• Software: AssetPool Covid19 Safeguarding Compliance & Verification Software who have now also set up a “back-to-school” blog on how to be safe with AssetPool
• Testing: Chronomics
• Testing: COVID-19 Rapid Test: Fortress Diagnostics
• Testing and Tracking: Taylor Education: Covid-19 testing and tracking app
• Thermal Temperature Camera System: Eclipse Strategic Security Ltd  
• Tracking: WerAreWe.

For more detail on each of the suppliers, please visit the BSA COVID supplier page here.

Partner news

BAISIS

The British Association of Independent Schools with International Students (BAISIS) is now a member of the BSA Group. BAISIS’s mission is to define and share best practice in academic and pastoral provision for international students in British independent schools and colleges. To learn more about how BAISIS supports schools with international students, please take a look at our website. 

As a member of BSA, we are delighted to offer your school membership of BAISIS at £295 per annum which is a 50% reduction in the annual subscription of £590. To take advantage of this offer, please email chris@boarding.org.uk.

Throughout the year, BAISIS also hosts a number of events designed to share best practice in academic and pastoral provision for international students in British independent schools. Two of these events will be taking place in October:

Practical strategies for teaching international pupils in the mainstream classroom seminar
October 02, 10:00 – 16:00

If you teach an academic subject to international pupils in a mainstream school, this seminar is designed to help you learn, refresh or build on your classroom strategies and teaching techniques to meet the needs of those pupils. This is a practical course which will help you to source suitable materials and consider how to support your pupils with both language acquisition and concept development. To reserve your place, click here.

Assessment for EAL students webinar
October 06, 12:00 – 13:00

The webinar will cover formative and summative assessment, including how supporting EAL pupil language development and tracking their progress can be done utilising a variety of online tools while purely face-to-face teaching models are disrupted. It will also consider how schools can incorporate generic EAL teaching skills into lessons which would allow for a wider range of exams to be taken for university entrance in addition to IELTS. To reserve your place, click here.

Sacpa

Also a member of the BSA Group is The Safeguarding and Child Protection Association (Sacpa), which champions excellence in safeguarding and child protection. Sacpa is the voice of safeguarding, providing a channel to government and other key agencies. The association represents organisations, associations, agencies and individuals involved in safeguarding the welfare of children and vulnerable adults in the UK and overseas. 

Sacpa offers three different types of membership: Professional, Charity and Organisation. A 50% discount is available to BSA members (schools or individual staff) who wish to join meaning membership prices start from £55 – please email chris@boarding.org.uk if you would like to become a member.

Safeguarding and child protection responsibilities, legislation and guidance vary around the world. Sacpa's Advice and Guidance hub brings together the leading policies from across the globe, as well a list of UK safeguarding partnerships, which are available for all members to view.

Please also take a look at Sacpa’s upcoming webinars and CPD events. The next event on the calendar is 'Coronavirus - impact on children and young people in BAME communities', which takes place on September 25. This can be accessed live, or as a recording after the event. BSA members can access this webinar at our member rate by quoting discount code ‘BSAWEB’. To book your place, click here.

Other partner news

Case studies needed for Celebrating Partnerships booklet: ISC has advised that production of the next Celebrating Partnerships booklet is under way. The annual publication is due for release in November to coincide with the social media-focussed partnerships week, which uses the hashtags #schoolstogether and #powerofpartnerships. If you have partnership case studies you would like to be considered for inclusion, please email press@isc.co.uk.

Entries open for i25 Awards: Entries are now open for this year’s i25 Awards. The i25 recognises the independent sector’s leading influencers and innovators who have made an impact in some way: the top 25. The innovation or influence should have captured the imagination of others and had a measurable positive impact on children and/or independent education in the UK and, ideally, be replicable in other schools. The deadline for entries is October 21. For more information, visit www.i25awards.co.uk.

South Korea Recruitment Webinars for UK Single-sex Boarding Schools: GSA has advised us of the following opportunity:

Boarding members may like to consider this opportunity from Jane Slinn at ITC to take part in a series of recruitment webinars this Autumn, promoted to families in South Korea. Full details are available here and a registration form is here. Please contact Jane Slinn and copy in Imogen Vanderpump if you are interested in taking part.

Health and safety filming opportunity: The Korea Communication Agency (KCA) is looking for schools to take part in filming for a documentary to promote school health and safety. The programme makers are particularly interested in fire drill and fire safety training at schools, outdoor field studies and road safety training for students and teachers. They would like to speak to any schools who would be interested in letting them film any upcoming fire drills, field trips or road safety training they have taking place in September.

Any schools interested in taking part should contact Philip Sung at Bridge International Group for further information.
 

Certified Guardian and Agent Schemes

BSA Certified Agents

We are delighted to announce that three new agents, Dickinson School Consulting, ITEC and Rise Smart Overseas Education Centre, have joined the BSA Certified Agent Scheme. Welcome to the BSA family!

• Academic Asia (China)
• Academic Families (worldwide) (Certified Agent and Certified Guardian)
• Barbara Glasmacher Internationale (Germany)
• Better School! Internatsberatung (Germany)
• BOSSS UK (China)
• Britannia StudyLink (HK)
• Cherry Education Consultancy (China)
• Connexcel (China) (Certified Agent and Certified Guardian)
• NEW: Dickinson School Consulting (Germany and worldwide)
• NEW: ITEC (Russia)
• J3 Group (HK)
• Mark Brooks Education (Ghana, Nigeria, worldwide)
• Overseas Personal Development Services (China)
• NEW: Rise Smart Overseas Education Centre (Hong Kong)
• School Britannia (France)
• The Independent Education Consultants (worldwide)
• The Watanabe Office (Japan) 
• UK Education Guide (Middle East, worldwide)
• UK Tuition Services (China).

BSA Certified Guardians

• Academic Families (Certified Agent and Certified Guardian)
• Amber Education
• Belgravia Guardians
• Berkeley Guardians
• Connexcel (Certified Agent and Certified Guardian)
• Cotswold Guardians
• Elite Anglo-Chinese Services 
• English Country Guardians 
• Guardians International Support
• Regent Guardians
• St George’s Guardians
• Study Links
• ​The Guardian Family Network
• UK Guardians
• UK Tuition and Services.

BSA Academy

Become a BSA Accredited Boarding Practitioner

BSA Accredited Boarding Practitioner status is an individual recognition of those boarding staff who are making a personal, professional commitment to best boarding practice. To be considered, all applicants are expected to meet the following core commitments:

• Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children
• Achieving the best boarding practice and the best outcomes for boarders
• Reflecting on practice and undertaking regular training
• Working collaboratively with other boarding colleagues.

Find out more here.

Member Services

State Boarding Schools (SBF)

In order to continue with the continuous improvement of services for SBF members we are keen to collect your opinion. Please could we ask that you complete a short survey about our current services and any improvements needed.

Thank you to the four schools which have already filled in the survey. If you've yet to complete it, please can we encourage you to do so. Please click here to take the survey.

We will feedback the results of this survey via our SBF Committee regional representatives.

Forums

We will soon be publishing the dates for the next rounds of forum meetings. In the meantime, please note that our Virtual Heads’ Conference, 22 -23 September, will include breakout sessions led by our regional forum reps and so if you wish to network with colleagues in your region this would be a very good opportunity to do so.

Keep in touch

Please note the BSA office is now closed and the team is working remotely. If you would like further advice from the BSA, please email bsa@boarding.org.uk or contact the team directly:

• Chief Executive - Robin Fletcher
• Chief Operating Officer - Aileen Kane
• Director of Safeguarding, Standards and Training - Dale Wilkins
• Member Services Director - Chris Ryan
• International Director - Caroline Nixon

• Director of Guardianship and Inclusion - Ammy Davies-Potter

• Head of Member Services - Beth Waddington
• Senior Training Manager - Liz McDonald
• Communications and Partnerships Manager - Andrew Gray
• Member Services Co-ordinator - Chantelle Howell-Walker.

T. +44 (0)207 798 1580
E. bsa@boarding.org.uk
W. www.boarding.org.uk